Darwin Nunez transfer decision moves CLOSER | OneFootball

Darwin Nunez has had a tumultuous few years at Liverpool and many fans want him to leave.

His efforts on the pitch have failed to meet expectations and a new environment may help to revitalise his career. For those of that persuasion, the idea of keeping him this summer is mental.

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It seems as though Liverpool are going to be bringing Hugo Ekitike into the team from Frankfurt for a high-cost move, and so he could well be considered as a Nunez replacement in many ways.

But the Frenchman would be our only major striker option and we have seen signs that Nunez still has more to give the team, so it could be considered a mistake to sell him on. Let's discuss that idea.

Liverpool need two strikers available

The heartbreaking loss of Diogo Jota has had an impacted on everyone connected to the club, and knowing that he isn't here anymore is incredibly difficult to understand. Liverpool have deal with his loss particularly well, with respect and decency, but on a sporting level, we're yet to fully readjust.

Nunez is the Reds' only striker and while Ekitike is being brought in, if we sanction a move for Nunez then the problem doesn't go away, we're still left having to try and figure out a new solution.

Spending money on another forward feels like a far-fetched idea, since we've completed a lot of transfer moves already this summer, and there is a risk that we've made too many squad changes.

As such, purely from a numbers point of view, it makes sense to keep Nunez. We might see Jayden Danns be called up into the set-up, but putting such a burden on a developing striker feels wrong.

Furthermore, Nunez doesn't have to go anywhere this season. The understanding has been that he wants to leave and Liverpool's patience has run out with him, but he's still contracted until 2028.

And then we should consider that moving him on hasn't been a straightforward process so far. The Reds haven't been able to find many teams that are willing to meet our asking price and he is intent on remaining in Europe when the Saudis are likely to give Liverpool the financial deal they want.

In a year, everything could change.

And then you've got to consider the merits for such a decision to keep him. He's making a goal contribution every 120 minutes he plays, which is not a bad rate and he's essentially in a brand new team this season, with Florian Wirtz able to play through balls into him on a regular basis.

He scored in a pre-season game against Preston last week and on Sunday, he scored a first-half hat-trick in a behind closed-doors game against Stoke City, with Wirtz on the pitch during that time.

We might genuinely have found a way to unlock him after all this time and even if he isn't able to deliver to a higher level than his previous campaigns, we have Ekitike that can play most of the time.